Packaging machine



Feb. 3, 1970 Filed Jan. 5, 1966 Z. ZILAHY PACKAGING MACHINE 5 Sheets-Sheet l 14 TTUR/VE Y ZOLTAN Z/LAHY Feb. 3, 1970 2. ZILAHY 3 3 PACKAGING MACHINE Filed Jan. 5. 1966 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR. ZOLTAN Z/LAHY B) Feb 3, 1970 z. ZILAHY 3,492,777

PACKAGING MACHINE Filed Jan. 3. 1966 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Jan. 5, 1966 rI/llll;

a all. 7 g m M IN- N I m m L B m Q a u 7 w 5 .1 mx 7 2 .1 m H a 2 m as 97 10V lo INVENTOR ZOL774N Z/LAH) United States Patent 3,492,777 PACKAGING MACHINE Zoltan Zilahy, Nutley, N.J., assignor, by mesne assignments, to Gerald Erickson, Surfside, Fla. Filed Jan. 3, 1966, Ser. No. 518,046 Int. Cl. B6513 17/02, 43/00 US. C]. 53-48 9 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The machine herein for loading tin cans into plastic carriers comprises means for individually releasing the carriers from a supply thereof and pushing a released carrier under a transfer device, the transfer device having fingers for gripping portions of the carrier and carrying the carrier to a folding head assembly which includes gripping means for engaging portions of a carrier delivered thereto and means for causing it to fold the carrier into shape for supporting the tin cans. The machine further comprises means for inserting the cans into the container, the gripping means of the folding head assembly having means associated therewith for exerting a resilient force thereon to enable portions of the carrier to grip the ends of the cans, and means for releasing the gripping means from the said portions of the loaded carrier.

THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a container loading machine and more particularly to a machine for automatically loading six containers simultaneously into a carrier.

The primary object of the present invention is to provide an improved automatic loading machine for inserting cans, such as beer cans, into skeletonized types of plastic carriers capable of holding six of such cans. Carriers of the indicated type may comprise spaced apart resilient plastic nest members having supporting members which are engageable with the tops and bottoms of a plurality of the cans; the spaced apart nest members being interconnected by resilient plastic webs. The carrier is designed so that the normal spacing between the upper and lower nest members is slightly less than the height of the containers to be received. Accordingly, the nest members are urged apart from one another to receive the containers and then released to firmly grip the containers.

Another object of the invention is to provide a loading machine of the indicated type having facilities for transporting a carrier from a supply thereof to a loading station in proper orientation for receiving containers.

A further object of the present invention is to provide in such an automatic loading machine, facilities for oppositely disposing nest members on opposite sides of a carrier and instrumentalities for urging the nest members apart to receive containers.

With these and other objects in view, the present invention contemplates an automatic loading machine including an automatic feed device, a pusher, a transfer device, a folding head assembly, and a container loading station. The automatic feed device retains a supply of carriers and individually releases the carriers one at a time. The pusher positions the released carrier beneath the transfer device which grips the carrier and delivers it to the folding head assembly. The folding head assembly receives the carrier from the transfer device and orients pairs of spaced apart nest members on the carrier to receive the containers. The folding head assembly then positions the carrier within the container loading station where the containers are inserted and cause the nest members to be spread apart. The folding head assembly then 3,492,777 Patented Feb. 3, 1970 "'ice releases the carrier and the nest members firmly grip the containers.

A better understanding of the construction and features of the machine of the present invention may be had by referring to the following detailed description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of one form of a container carrier having nest members with supporting shoulders formed thereon;

FIG. 2 is an elevational view of the carrier shown in FIG. 1 with the nest members in position for holding containers in the form of cans, such as beer cans;

FIG. 3 is a top view of the carrier shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 holding six cans and particularly illustrating the relationship between the supporting shoulders and the can tops;

FIG. 4 is a schematic plan view of the automatic loading machine particularly illustrating the automatic feed device, the transfer device, and the folding head assembly for handling the carriers;

FIG. 5 is a plan view of the container loading station of the machine;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary sectional view of the automatic feed device taken along line 55 of FIG. 4 and illustrating the details of construction thereof;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary sectional view of the transfer device to show the details of construction thereof;

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary sectional view of the folding head assembly illustrating the details of construction and showing the folding head assembly in operated condition; and

FIG. 9 is a sectional view of the container loading station taken along line 9-9 of FIG. 5.

Although the carrier to be described with respect to the present invention may be designed to hold almost any type of container, the following detailed description will describe by way of example a carrier designed to carry a set of six cans, in order to more clearly illustrate the operation of the machines of this invention.

Referring first to FIG. 1 the carrier shown therein is generally designated by the reference numeral 10. Carrier 10 is formed from any suitable plastic composition which is both flexible and resilient. The carrier includes upper nest members 11 and lower nest members 12. The nest members are interconnected in spaced apart relation by inner webs 13 and outer webs 15. The upper portions of the outer webs are joined to form a handle portion 16.

Nest members 11 and 12 are identical in size and construction and have hubs 17 (FIG. 2) extending upward from the top surfaces of the nest members as viewed in FIG. 1. Four supporting shoulders 18 are spaced about each hub 17 for inter-locking with the rims of the containers. The supporting shoulders also extend upwardly from the top surfaces of the nest members (FIG. 2). The hubs 17 are provided with central apertures 21 to give the nest members added flexibility.

In order to load containers such as the can 22 shown in FIG. 2 into the carrier 10, the upper nest members 11 and the lower nest members must be turned so that the hubs 17 on the upper and lower nest members, respec tively, face one another. The upper nest members are then pulled apart from the lower nest members stretching webs 13 and 15 to permit the rims 23 of the cans 22 (FIG. 3) to be inserted intermediate the supporting shoulders 18 and hubs 17. Since the normal distance between the upper and lower nest members as viewed in FIG. 2. is slightly less than the height of cans 22, the nest members will firmly grip the cans when the tension is removed from the webs. Handle 16 may now be gripped and the six cans conveniently carried in the carrier 10.

3 GENERAL DESCRIPTION To fully understand the following description, the arrows A adjacent to the left-hand side of FIG. 4 should be aligned with the arrows B adjacent to the right-hand side of FIG. 5 to get an over-all view of the automatic loading machine. Referring first to FIG. 4, the loading machine includes an automatic feed device generally designated as 25. The feed device retains a stack of carriers and individually releases the carriers onto a table 26. A released carrier 10 lies on table 26 intermediate a pair of vertical upstanding guide rails 27. A pusher, generally designated as 29, includes a pusher bar 31 which rides on table 26 intermediate rails 27. The pusher bar 31 is moved to the left as view in FIG. 4 to advance the released carrier to a predetermined position beneath a transfer device generally designated as 32.

Transfer device 32 picks up the carrier and is moved between guide rails 33 to a predetermined position over a folding head assembly generally designated as 35. The transfer device releases the carrier and the nest members of the latter are gripped by the folding head assembly.

The folding head assembly bends the carrier to the position shown in FIG. 2 and then advances the carrier to a loading station generally designated as 36 and shown in FIG. 5. At the loading station 36, cans carried on conveyor belts 37 are advanced intermediate the upper and lower nest members of the carrier by a pair of cross slides 38. The advancing cans cause the Webs of the carrier to stretch in the manner above indicated and the folding head assembly 35 then releases the carrier to enable the nest members to firmly grip the cans.

AUTOMATIC FEED DEVICE Reference is now made to FIG. 6 which in conjunction With FIG. 4, show the automatic feed device 25 in detail. The feed device 25 includes four feed shafts 40 having enlarged hubs 41 with external spaced threads 42 (FIG. 6). Sprockets 43 having apertures 44 are mounted about shafts 40 and seat on the upper surfaces 46 of hubs 41. The sprockets 43 are secured to shafts 40 by set screws 47.

Feed shafts 40 are rotatably mounted on support plates 49. The lower ends 51 or shafts 40 extend through apertures 52 in the support plates 49 and are secured against vertical movement by washers 53 and associated set screws 54. The support plates 49 are supported above the table 26 by blocks 56 which are mounted on table 26 on the outsides of the rails 27.

The carriers 10 are stacked one upon the other (FIG. 4) and are held in a predetermined position by guide members 58 which engage the handle portions 16 of the carriers 10 on opposite edges thereof, and by guide fingers 59 which extend into the junction between the outer webs and lower nest members 12. Guide members 58 and guide fingers 59 are mounted on the surfaces of the support plates 49 and extend vertically upwardly therefrom to retain the stack of carriers 10.

A one way ratchet 61 is mounted on a vertical shaft 62 which is in turn secured to table 26. Shaft 62 is fixed against rotation by a key (not shown) which engages slots (not shown) in the shaft and in table 26. A Washer 63 is positioned about the lower end of shaft 62 and held in place by set screw 64 to avoid vertical upward movement of the shaft. Also an identical washer and set screw (not shown) are positioned about shaft 62 slightly above table 26 to prevent downward movement of the shaft.

Ratchet 61 includes a spur gear '66 and a sprocket 67 attached thereto. The ratchet 61 may be any one of a large number of commercially available one way ratchets; hence the operational details will not be described. A rack gear 71 engages the spur gear 66 and is connected to a piston rod 72 of a double acting pneumatic cylinder 73 (FIG. 4). Cylinder 73 is supported on the table 26 by a bracket 74. An idler sprocket 76 in FIG. 4, is

formed on a shaft 77 which is rotatably supported on table 26 by washer and set screw combinations, not shown, but identical to those described with respect to shaft 62, and placed above and below table 26 to prevent vertical movement of the shaft 77. A chain 78 shown in dotted lines in FIG. 4 is mounted about sprockets 43, 67 and 76.

In the operation of the mechanism shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, the piston rod or shaft 72 is advanced to the left as seen in FIG. 4 thereby moving rack gear 71 to the left and rotating spur gear 66. Ratchet 61 is designed so that this rotation of spur gear 66 is imparted to sprocket '67. The rotation of sprocket 67 is transmitted by chain 78 to sprocket 43, thereby rotating shafts 40 and hubs 41. The stroke of piston 72 is such that suificient rotation is imparted to hubs 41 so that the lowermost carrier 10 is fed through threads 42 and released to fall onto table 26 intermediate the rails 27 as indicated in FIG. 6. Upon retraction of the piston shaft 72, gear 66 is rotated in the opposite directoin. However, due to the ratchet action of ratchet 61 no rotation is imparted to sprocket 67.

Pusher bar 31 is connected to the piston rod 80 of a double acting pneumatic cylinder 81 in FIG. 4 mounted on table 26. Upon movement of piston rod 81 to the left as viewed in FIG. 4, pusher bar 31 moves along table 26 (FIG. 6) and engages the released carrier 10 lying on such table. Upon completion of the left-ward movement of pusher bar 31, carrier 10 comes to rest in a predetermined position beneath transfer device 32.

Transfer device Considering now FIG. 7 in conjunction with FIG. 4, which show the details of the transfer device 32, it will be observed that the transfer device 32 includes spaced apart vertical side wall members 86 with two housings 87 secured therebetween. The -wall members 86 are mounted for movement on four wheels 88 provided on axles 89 which extend through apertures (not shown) in the wheels and wall members 86. The wheels are held in place on the axles by snap-on washers 91 which seat in grooves (not shown) in the axles.

The housings 87 each have two cylindrical bores 93 in which cylindrical plungers 94 are slidably mounted. The plungers 94 (one of which is shown in detail in FIG. 7) have outer diameters slightly less than the diameters of the bores 93. A pair of slots 95 are formed in the lower end of each plunger 94 for receiving and mounting a gripping finger 97 in each slot. Gripping fingers 97 are pivotally mounted on pivot pins 98 which are in turn supported in apertures (not shown) in the walls f each slot. The gripping fingers 97 have curved lower camming surfaces or jaws 101 which are biased towards each other by springs 102 each having one end mounted in wells 103 and the other end bearing against extensions 104 of the finger 97. A plate 105 is mounted beneath the housings 87 by screws 107. Plate 105 is provided with four sets of slots 168, one set of which is shown in FIG. 7, and through which the fingers 97 extend. The plungers 94 are retained within the bores '93 by supporting dowels 1189 which rest against springs in retaining bores 111 provided in such plungers.

Positioned over the housings 87 are two shafts 113 which extend between and are rotatably supported by the wall members 86. The shafts 113 are held in place by snap washers 114 which are the same type as snap washers 91. The shafts 113 are positioned so as to extend across the tops of the plungers 94 in the housings. Four eccentrics 116 are mounted two on each shaft 113 so that each eccentric contacts the top 117 of a plunger 94. The eccentrics 116 are secured to the shafts 113 by set screws 118. Connected to the central portion of each shaft 1-13 is a link member 120 which is held in place thereon by a set screw 121. An arm 122 of each link member 120* extends into a groove 124 in a connecting bar 125. Each arm 122 is pivotally mounted by a pivot stud 126 within the groove 124. Associated with one end of the bar 125 is a double acting pneumatic cylinder 128 (FIG. 4), which is supported on a bracket 129' mounted intermediate the wall members 86. A piston rod 130 extending from cylinder 128 is connected to the connecting bar 125.

- Assuming that the pusher bar 31 has advanced a carrier (shown in FIG. 7) so that its nest members are positioned beneath the pairs of fingers 97 of the plungers 94, it will be understood that when the pneumatic cylinder 128 is actuated to move the connecting bar 125 forwardly as viewed in FIG. 7, shafts 113' will be rotated to rotate the eccentric members 116. The rotation of the eccentric members 116 is such that the plungers 94 will be moved downwardly against the force of the springs 110 to cause the camming surfaces 101 of each set of fingers 97 to engage a nest member. The nest members cause fingers 97 to spread apart against the force of springs \102 so that each set of fingers will firmly grip a nest member at the end of the advancing movement of their associated plunger 94. When the operation of cylinder 128 is reversed bar 125 will move in the opposite direction and permit the plungers 94 to be urged upwardly by the springs 110. As the plungers and fingers rise, carrier 10 is raised above table 26 as a result of the gripping action of the fingers on the nest members thereof. A double acting pneumatic cylinder 132 (FIG. 4) mounted on table 26 and connected to the transfer device 32 by a piston rod 133 and bracket 134 which is connected to wall members 86, is then actuated to move the transfer device 32 toward the folding head assembly 35. The transfer device 32 is advanced along the table 26 until the lowermost wheels 8-8 thereof, as viewed in FIG. 4, are on tracks 136 and 137 provided in the folding head assembly 35 and the transferred carrier 10 is in a predetermined position above such folding head assembly.

Reference is now made to FIGS. 4 and 8 for details of the folding head assembly 35. As is shown, the folding head assembly includes a truck 140 having a pair of side walls 141 and 142, a front wall 143- and a deck 144. The various walls are formed from suitable metals and are connected to one another in any suitable manner as by welding. The truck 140' is mounted on wheels 146 which are mounted on axles 147. The axles extend through apertures in the walls 141 and 142, and the wheels are retained by snap washers 148 as descrbed with respect to wheels 88 of transfer device 32.

The truck 140 rides on a table 150 with the wheels thereof located between a pair of guide rails 151 and 152 provided on such table. A pair of spaced bearings 154 are mounted on the deck 144 and support a shaft 155. A first pair of hubs 156 of connecting rods 157 are mounted about shaft 155 and held in place by set screws 158. The connecting rods are secured at their other ends to a shaft 161 by a second pair of hubs 160 which are held in place on such shaft by set screws 162. Shaft 161 is supported by bearings 163 which are mounted on the upper plate 164 of a housing 165. Housing 165 in addition to plate 164 includes side walls 167 and 168 and front and rear walls 169 and 170, respectively.

Also mounted on the truck 140 is a double acting pneumatic cylinder 172 which is secured by a bracket 173 to the deck 144 thereof. Cylinder 172 includes a piston rod 174 which has a coupling block 175 mounted on its end. Mounted on the shaft 155 and held in place thereon by set screw 178, is a connector 177 having an arm 179 which extends into a slot 181 in block 175 and is pivotally mounted therein by a screw 182. Located adjacent to the connector 177 is a sector of a gear 184 which is mounted on shaft 155 and is secured in a manner not shown to deck 144 to prevent rotation thereof. Meshing with gear sector 184 is a gear 185 mounted on shaft 161 and secured to the rear wall 170 of housing 165 by screws 186.

As will be observed in FIG. 4 of the drawings, the deck 144 of truck 140 and the upper plate 164 of the housing 165 normally lie in the same plane. When the piston rod 174 of the cylinder 172 is retracted all the way, shaft is prevented from rotating and consequently the housing is prevented from moving downward. Upon actuation of cylinder 172, shaft 155 is rotated about 90 degrees and raises the housing 165 via the connecting rods 157. During the 90 degree rotation of shaft 155, gear will roll against the fixed sector 184 to cause the housing 165 to rotate 90 degrees about shaft 161. As a result of this translatory rotating movement of housing 165, such housing is rotated 180 degrees with respect to truck 140 to bring it directly above the truck 140 as shown in FIG. 8 of the drawings.

Referring now more particularly to FIG. 8, it will be noted that a housing is secured at one end to the front wall 143 of truck 140. Mounted within the housing 190 is a pair of chucks designated generally by the numeral 191. As the chucks are similar in construction, the following description of one of the chucks 191 applies equally to both chucks. Housing 190 is provided with a pair of cylindrical bores 192 each with a shoulder 193 for receiving the chucks 191. Each chuck 191 includes a barrel 195 having a cap 196 threaded thereon. Barrel 195 is provided with a central cylindrical bored out section 197 which communicates iwth a slotted portion 198. The upper end of the barrel 195 is provided with a shoulder 201 upon which a bottom nest member 12 of a carrier 10 may be seated and a cylindrical projection 202 which extends through the aperture 21 in the nest member. A jaw 203 is pivotally mounted in the slotted portion 198 on a pin 204 which extends between the walls of the slot. A spring 206 is seated between a shoulder 207 on barrel 195 and the shoulder 193 for supporting the chuck 191 within the bore 192. Threaded nut 208 is threaded onto cap 196 and tightened against the force of spring 206 until the chuck 191 projects a predetermined distance above housing 190. Extending beneath the housing 190 is a support plate 211 which is connected at one end to the front wall 143 of truck 140. A pair of pneumatic cylinders 212 are mounted on plate 211 and each has a piston rod 213 which extends through a central aperture 214 in the cap 196 of a chuck 191. A frustoconical cam 216 is mounted on the upper end of each rod 213 and is urged upwardly by a spring 217 which surrounds the rod 213 and is seated against the cam 216 at one end and against a shoulder 218 of cap 196 at its other end. I aw 203 has a cam follower 221 which contacts cam 216 and has a projection 222 which holds or grips the nest member 12 seated on shoulder 201. A spring 223 seated in cup 224 formed in barrel 195 urges the projection 222 over the nest member, and urges the follower 221 against the cam 216.

Secured at one end to the front wall 169 of housing 165 is a housing 226 provided with a pair of chucks 227 which are mounted within such housing to cooperate with the chucks 191 when the folding head assembly is in the condition shown in FIG. 8 of the drawings. As the chucks 227 are similar in construction the following description with respect to the one chuck 227 which shows in section will be applicable to both. Each of the chucks 227 includes a barrel portion 228 positioned within a cylindrical bore 229 in the housing 226. A cap 231 having a central cylindrical bore 232 which communicates with a slotted portion 233 is threaded onto the barrel. Chuck 227 is held stationary in the housing 226 by the coaction of a nut 235 threaded onto barrel 228 and a bar 236 which presses downwardly against the shoulders 237 provided on the caps 231 of the two chucks. Bar 236 has a screw portion 238 which is threaded into a threaded aperture in a cap 239 of a screw 241. Screw 241 is first threaded into an aperture provided in housing 226 and then tightened onto screw portion 238 forcing bar 236 against shoulder 237. Associated with the cap 231 is a jaw 243 which is pivotally mounted on a pin 244 extending between the walls of the slot 233. A leaf spring 245 is secured to cap 231 by a screw 246 and presses against the jaw 243 to urge a projection 247 thereof over part of an upper nest member 11 of a carrier 10 which may be seated on cylindrical projection 248 of cap 231. Jaw 243 serves to positively retain or grip the nest member in conjunction with cap projection 248. Extending in substantially parallel relation to the housing 226 is a support plate 251 which is connected at one end to the housing 165. A pneumatic cylinder 252 is secured to plate 251 and has a piston rod 253 extending through an aperture 254 in the chuck barrel 228. A frustoconical cam 255 is mounted on the end of rod 253 and contacts the cam follower 256 of jaw 243. A spring 257 surrounds rod 253 and is seated at one end against cam 255 and against a shoulder 258 of barrel 228 at its other end. Spring 257 normally urges cam 255 downwardly to permit jaw 243 to grip the nest member 11 seated on the chuck projection 248.

As can readily be appreicated from the foregoing, the actuation of cylinders 252 and 212 causes cams 255 and 216, respectively, to pivot jaws 243 and 203, respectively, to release the nest members 11 and 12, respectively. In the showing of FIG. 8, the jaws 203 and 243 are displaced 90 degrees from their normal positions shown in FIG. 4 to facilitate the description. In the operation of the machine, the transfer device 32 is initially positioned directly over housings 190 and 226 with the nest members of the container 10 located directly over the chucks 191 and 227. When the cylinder 128 of the transfer device 32 is actuated to lower the jaws 101 and the carrier 10 held thereby, the upper nest members 11 contact the sloped edges 260 of jaws 243 causing such jaws to be cammed outwardly and thereby enabling them to slip over the chuck projections 248. When the nest members are seated on the projections 248, the jaws 243 will snap back over the rims of the nest members to secure them in position on such projections. At the same time, the lower nest members 12 will contact the sloped edges 261 of jaws 203 and cause such jaws to be cammed inwardly. The jaws 203 can now slip through the apertures 21 in the nest members 12 and secure such members on the projections 202. Upon retraction of the fingers 97 of the transfer device 32, the nest members and hence the carrier will remain gripped by the chuck jaws in the manner above described.

Considering now the disclosure of FIGS. and 9, it will be observed that the loading station 36 includes a platform 270 supported on legs 271. Conveyor belts 37 ride over spaced rollers 272 and 273 which are mounted between the end posts 274. Variable speed electric motors 276 are mounted on supports 277 in FIG. 5 seated on the platform 270. The motors 276 drive rollers 272 via interconnecting shafts 278. Guard rails 280 are positioned on opposite sides of each conveyor belt 37 to guide and prevent the feeding beer cans from falling off the belts. The guard rails 280 are supported by vertical posts 281 (FIGURE 9) which are mounted on the platform 270. An auxiliary table 283 is mounted on one end of the platform 270 and is supported thereon by legs 284. As sociated with the table 283 are the cross slides 38, each of which have three semi-circular indentations 286 in the working face thereof for engagement with three beer cans. The cross slides 38 are provided with piston rods 287 which extend from double acting pneumatic cylinders 288 mounted on support brackets 289 in FIG. 5 resting on the table 283. Directly in front of each of the cross slides 38 are positioned movable sections 291 of the guard rails 280. Each movable section of the guard rails is mounted on the upper end of a piston rod 292 in FIG. 9 of a pneumatic cylinder 293 seated on the table 283. Extending across the conveyor belts 37 adjacent to the belt rollers 273 are stop plates 296 which are mounted on vertical posts 297 extending up from the table 283.

'Located between the cross slides 38 and the belts 37 is a loading table 298 composed of two spaced sections 301 and 302 connected together at /one end by a web 303. The two table sections 301 and 302 are pivotally mounted by pivot pins 304 on standards 305 rising from the auxiliary table 283. A pneumatic cylinder 307 seated on the table 283 has a piston rod 308 connected at its upper end to web 303 so that movement of such rocl will actuate the loading table 298 upwardly and downwardly. Extending downwardly from the loading table 298 between and toward the entry ends of the conveyor belts 37 is a discharge chute 310 for the packaged cans. The discharge chute 310 which includes a bottom portion 311 and side walls 312, is mounted at its lower end directly on the platform 270 and at its upper end on a supporting post 313 rising from such platform adjacent to the auxiliary table 283.

It will be understood from the foregoing that when a carrier 10 has been supplied to the folding head assembly 35 in the manner previously described and is held in a horizontal position by such assembly 35 as shown in FIG. 4, and the pneumatic cylinder 172 is actuated to move piston rod 174 forwardly and rotate shaft 155 approximately degrees, the rotation of shaft will be transmitted to shaft 161 and housing 165, thereby causing housing 165 to rotate degrees since gear will also rotate 90 degrees about fixed gear sector 184. These motions of the machine will cause the upper nest members 11 of the carrier 10 to be positioned directly above the lower nest members 12 thereof so that the carrier 10 is in the condition shown in FIG. 2 of the drawings, and the parts of the folding head assembly are in the positions shown in FIG. 8. The pneumatic cylinder 315 (FIG. 4) mounted on the table 150 then advances the piston rod 316 forwardly to move the truck 140 toward the loading station 36. As the truck 140 is advanced, the chucks 191 will pass between the table sections 301 and 302 and extend slightly above these sections. The chucks 191 and 227 will come to rest in predetermined positions intermediate the ends of table sections 301 and 302 when the advancement of the truck 140 has been completed.

The conveyor belts 37 operate to advance the beer cans against stop plates 296 associated therewith. When the beer cans contact the stop plates a switch (not shown) is actuated to stop the rotation of the conveyor belts. In the alternative, a star wheel may be utilized for feeding or releasing an appropriate number of beer cans to pass and be positioned in front of the cross slides. On the next operation of the machine, the movable guard rails 291 are lowered and the cross slides 38 are moved toward each other to transfer the beer cans onto the table 298' intermediate the chucks. Since the distance between the upper and lower nest members of the carrier is slightly less than the height of the cans, the advancing cans will urge chucks 191 downwardly against the force of springs 206 thereby stretching the webs 13 and 15 of the carrier. When the cans are fully advanced into the carrier in the manner shown in FIG. 3, the shoulders 18 of the carrier will snap into place inside the rims of the cans to cause the cans to be firmly and resiliently gripped by the carrier. The cylinders 252 are then actuated to cause the jaws 243 to be cammed outwardly to release the upper nest members of the carrier. The cylinders 212 are then actuated to lower the cams 216 thereby camming the associated jaws 203 inwardly and releasing the lower nest members of the carrier. Continued downward movement of the cams 216 causes the engagement thereof with the caps 196 and consequent lowering of chucks 191 against the force of their springs 206 to a position beneath the upper surfaces of table sections 301 and 302. The cans retained by the carrier are now seated on loading table 298 free from interference with the chucks. Actuation of cylinder 307 then lowers the table 298 and the cans held by the carrier slide onto the discharge chute 310.

While I have hereinabove described and shown in the drawings a specific embodiment of my invention by way of example, it will be understood that the invention is in no way limited to this disclosed specific embodiment and that there are many variations thereof that will come within the spirit and scope of this invention as set forth in the following claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A machine for loading containers into a carrier blank having in the folded condition thereof spaced apart upper and lower members for gripping the tops and bottoms of the containers, comprising spaced apart means for gripping portions of said carrier members in the unfolded condition of the carrier blank, means for moving one of said gripping means relative to the other to fold the blank so as to reposition the upper carrier member over the lower carrier member, means for inserting the containers between the upper and lower repositioned members, means associated with said gripping means for exerting a resilient force on said gripping means so as to enable the repositioned carrier members to grip the tops and bottoms of the containers, and means associated with said gripping means to release the latter from said upper and lower members in their container gripping relation to enable them to be stripped therefrom.

2. A machine for loading containers into a carrier blank having in the folded condition thereof spaced apart upper and lower members for gripping the tops and bottoms of the containers, comprising means for supporting a supply of carrier blanks, means for individually releasing the carrier blanks from the supply, a folding head assembly including spaced apart means for gripping portions of said carrier members in the unfolded condition of the carrier blank, means for transferring a released carrier blank to the folding head assembly, means rendered effective when a carrier blank is located in a given relation relative to said gripping means to actuate the latter to grip the said portions of the carrier blank, means for moving one of said gripping means relative to the other to fold the blank so as to reposition the upper carrier member over the lower carrier member, and means for inserting the containers between the upper and lower repositioned members so as to enable the latter to grip the tops and bottoms of the containers.

3. A machine according to claim 2, wherein the transfer means comprises a movable housing a plurality of plungers slidably supported within said housing having gripping fingers for engaging portions of the carrier blank, and means for moving said plungers downwardly to engage said fingers with such carrier blank portions in gripping relation.

4. The machine defined in claim 2 in which said gripping means includes a first chuck means for holding the upper can gripping carrier members, and second chuck means for holding the lower can gripping carrier members, said moving means moving said first chuck means relative to said second chuck means to fold the blank and reposition the upper carrier members over the lower carrier members, and said inserting means comprising slide means for engaging the containers and pushing the latter in between the upper and lower carrier members.

5. In a machine according to claim 4, wherein said first chuck means repositions the upper carrier members at a distance from the lower carrier members less than the height of the containers, means rendered effective upon engagement of the containers with the carrier members for permitting said first and second chuck means to move relative to each other to enlarge said distance between the upper and lower carrier members.

6. In a machine according to claim 5, means for actuating the first chuck means, and means for actuating the second chuck means to release the carrier members therefrom.

7. In a machine according to claim 6, a loading table, said actuating means for the second chuck means lowering the second chuck means to place the carrier and containers on said loading table.

8. In a machine according to claim '4, wherein said moving means comprises a first housing for holding the first chuck means, a second housing for holding the second chuck means, means for rotating the first housing about the second housing, and means rendered effective by said rotation for further rotating the first housing.

9. In a machine according to claim 4, wherein said transfer device includes plunger means for picking up a carrier, means for positioning a dispensed carrier beneath the transfer device, drive means for actuating the plunger means to pick up the dispensed carrier, and wherein said first and second chuck means include movable jaws for gripping the upper and lower carrier members, means for moving the transfer device to position a carrier blank over said folding head assembly, said drive means actuating plungers to contact the carrier with the chucks to cam the jaws into gripping relationship with the carrier members, a loading station including a pair of cross-slides and a loading table, means for moving said folding head assembly to position the carrier in the loading station, means formoving the cross-slides to insert the containers between the upper and lower carrier members, and releasing means for moving the jaws to release the carrier members and to lower the second pair of chucks to seat the containers and carrier on the loading table.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,395,509 8/1968 Erickson 53-48 3,192,682 7/1965 Bernat 53-48 XR TRAVIS S. MCGEHEE, Primary Examiner NEIL ABRAMS, Assistant Examiner 

